Malaysians Against Pornography (MAP) should clarify the methodology of its study which found that about 80 percent of children aged between 10 to 17 intentionally had watched pornography last year.

Women, Family and Community Development Minister Dr Wan Azizah Wan Ismail (photo, above) said the study methodology should be explained in detail.

“Obviously, the result is worrying. Nonetheless, the findings should be explained in terms of how the study was conducted, how small or how big is the sample, how MAP obtained the conclusions. 

"How did MAP come to those sort of results?” she asked in response to a news report on the study. 

She was met after opening a Seminar on Volunteers in National Hospitals at Universiti Putra Malaysia today.

Wan Azizah said her ministry was giving serious attention to children exposed to pornography in cyberspace. 

The deputy prime minister said the fifth Malaysia Population and Family Study in 2014 showed 35.3 of individuals aged 13 to 24 were exposed to pornography via the internet, smartphones and pornographic digital video disc. The study is conducted by LPPKN every 10 years.

The Women, Family and Community Development Ministry, through LPPKN, has been giving education to parents on the safety of children in cyberspace through its Children and Family Safety Awareness Programme (Peka), in which parents were taught ways to assist children to deal with cyberbullying, sexting and online grooming.

“As of 2018, 184 Peka programmes were conducted, involving 5,520 participants from all over Malaysia. Another programme is Pekerti which gives exposure to children and teenagers on sexuality, in which 779,000 participants were involved in the programme as at the end of 2018.

“Apart from that, the Cyber Smart Family campaign is aimed at ensuring quality time with the family, as well as setting appropriate time for using gadgets, as well as the Family Reject Pornography (Stop) campaign, an initiative of non-governmental organisations,” she added.

- Bernama